Christmas's Gift
by KnowledgeandImagination
Summary: After the war with Aizen, many words were left unsaid, and a barrier seemed to have erected between them. Perhaps an outing to the World of the Living on Christmas could change that...2010 Hitsuhina Christmas oneshot! Merry Christmas to all!


Merry Christmas, and for those that don't celebrate it, happy holidays! For number five, I bring you a Hitsuhina Holiday oneshot! Not sure exactly how Christmasy this is, but…yeah…AznVkai gave me this prompt originally, so thank you!

Umm, hope you enjoy?

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**Christmas's Gift**

"Look over there! That house is so pretty!"

"Yes, I see it."

The boy who spoke appeared to be bored, yet if one examined his face closely, they would see the faintest trace of a smile tugging at the corner of his lips, and his turquoise eyes soften as they gazed upon his companion.

His companion seemed to contrast him. Her face was openly alight with excitement and happiness, and her warm brown eyes sparkled as they reflected the light of a house strewn with bright Christmas lights. "Humans have such beautiful decorations, ne, Shiro-chan?"

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that, Hinamori!"

Hinamori Momo giggled and pulled him on. "It's been so long since I've been in the world of the living," she said, gazing up at the falling snow contentedly. "The past year has just been chaos, ne, Hitsugaya-kun?"

Hitsugaya Toushirou did not reply, though his expression hardened slightly as unpleasant memories surfaced. He pushed them down. It was over. The war with Aizen was over, and they must move on. That was why he had requested to the Soutaichou to give them a day off so that they may spend some time in the world of the living, away from the pressures of Seireitei and away from their duties, if only just for a few hours.

So far, Momo really seemed to enjoy it. She looked happier than he'd seen her for days, and back to her old, cheerful self. It was Christmas, and snow was fluttering down, blanketing the human city with a soft blanket while cheerful carols gently rang out upon the streets. Sometimes, Momo would hum along with a few of the songs she knew from past trips to the human world. Sometimes, she'd laugh as she found amusing decorations in the stores, and sometimes, she'd just stare off into space, lost in her own world, a content expression upon her face.

But that did not mean that she was completely oblivious to her companion. Occasionally she'd sneak glances at him when he wasn't looking at her. She noticed that he seemed utterly uninterested in their outing. She had no idea of his other feelings either. All was hidden by the cold veil before his eyes and his nonchalant expression.

At length, she could no longer stand it. "Hitsugaya-kun?" she asked tentatively. He looked at her, his eyes questioning. She opened her mouth, but found that she had nothing to say. "It's…nothing…"

They dissolved into awkward silence. Toushirou growled inwardly in frustration. Such had been their interaction since the war with Aizen. They'd tread carefully around one another, never speaking about the matter. Never mentioning that Aizen had tricked Toushirou into nearly killing the one person he'd sworn to protect. Yet the incident lingered over them, the words unspoken created a dark cloud that hung oppressively between them, creating a barrier between the two who had once been so close.

Treating it as if it had never happened would never last. Both knew that it would come up again, but both were waiting for the other to bring it up, and both feared having to face it.

Momo shivered as a bitter winter's gale blew by. The action did not go unnoticed by Toushirou. 'Are you cold, Hinamori?"

"A little," she admitted. He nodded, and carefully pulled her into a nearby gift shop. Merry Christmas music reached their ears as a wave of warmth washed over them.

Momo sighed. He always treated her so carefully these days, as if she were a delicate being made of glass, and easily shattered. She supposed that her past behavior had warranted this, but she really wished that he'd stop being so careful and distant with her. She wished…she just wished for his closeness, for him to hold her, and for the barriers between them to dissolve so that maybe…

She shook her head. Now was not the time for these thoughts.

A sudden beeping interrupted their silence. Frowning, the captain reached into his pocket and pulled out his soul pager. He cursed slightly. "And I thought we were given a day off."

Momo had pulled out her own pager. A hollow was nearby. Not a large one, but no one else was around. He snapped his phone shut. "Stay here, Hinamori. I'll take care of it."

She opened her mouth to argue, but he'd already left. Sighing, she turned back to browsing the gifts, not really seeing them. They were all the generic type, nothing special…except…

She doubled back to see what had caught her eye. A flash of light had caught of the silver metal of a small, but intricately made dragon. She picked it up, and found that it hung on a chain, long enough to be worn around the neck. She considered it. It wasn't remotely feminine, and the chain was ordinary and unobtrusive. It seemed okay for a boy to wear, and not seem odd. She looked at the dragon and smiled. The silver of its body caught the light easily, its lithe body twisting, giving hints of strong muscles beneath it, and its eyes were small, brilliantly blue stones, like chips of ice. Its jaws were open in a growl. It reminded her irresistibly of Hyourinmaru, and with that, her childhood friend.

She decided to buy it. She had not gotten her friend a Christmas present yet, and this seemed like a good one. She bought it with the human money she'd brought with her, and grinned to herself as she tucked it in her pocket. She hoped that he'd like it.

Just then, her phone beeped again. Glancing at it, she saw that another hollow had appeared. Forgetting Toushirou's request of staying inside, she dashed out. It was exhilarating to feel the wind against her face as she ran, feeling her muscles being put to use. Too long had she been forced to lie down, from being hurt by Aizen the first time, and having her organs regenerated the second. It felt good to stretch her legs.

She arrived at the site where the hollow was in less time than she'd have liked, slightly out of breath from lack of exercise and her gigai's weaker form. It was in the middle of a park, terrorizing a small plus. Without a second's thought, she swallowed a green pill and broke free of her Gigai. Raising her hands, she called out, "Hadou 31, Shakkahou!"

She grinned to herself as she felt the familiar rush of reiatsu bubble up within her, and burst forth in the powerful kidou. The hollow barely had time to turn toward her, then the blast of red flame hit it and it disintegrated.

She turned to the plus, and smiling at it, said, "Come on, it's time for you to move on. Don't be scared."

The plus nodded, slightly fearful, but trusting of this warm girl that had saved her life. Momo smiled as she watched the small girl vanish. It really had been too long since she'd been out, doing the ordinary things that shinigami did.

"Hinamori!"

She turned. Toushirou was hurrying toward her, still in his shinigami form. She smiled at him. "Hi, Hitsugaya-kun!"

'Are you all right?" he asked, worry in his eyes. Momo's smile faltered slightly. "Yes," she said somewhat snappishly. "It was just a weak hollow. Stop treating me so carefully! I'm a lieutenant. I can handle things like this and not break!"

He looked as if she'd slapped him in the face, and she clapped her hands to her mouth in horror. "I'm…sorry," she said, her head bowing. "You…you were just trying to look out for me…"

He shook his head. "No, it's not all right." He clenched his fists. "I try too hard. I've always tried to shield you from everything. I guess…I guess I seem like an overprotective fool and in the end, I couldn't even do that right."

Momo's heard sank. At last, they had breached the topic both of them dreaded. But she did not want to talk about it. Not now.

Sighing, she eyed the snow around them. Memories of spending her childhood playing in the snow surfaced. Momo grinned to herself and reached down to scoop up a pile of snow. She couldn't help but laugh at the shocked expression upon his face as the snow flew into it, making him look like a half-made snowman.

"Hinamori…" he said in a low voice, a hint of a warning in it. She laughed harder, and the sound eased his previous gloom. He felt a slight smirk tug at his lips.

"What is it?" she asked innocently. "You're an ice wielder, aren't you? A little snow shouldn't hurt."

"Yes, I'm an ice wielder. Which is why you should _not _provoke me with it."

He reached down and scooped up some snow as well. Momo gasped, and tried to dodge, but he'd anticipated her movement, and the snow thwacked her on the arm.

"Shiro-chan!"

Another snowball flew past her face. "Don't call me that!"

She laughed and scooped up her own snow. Without waiting for him to do the same, she threw it at him.

It was all out war then. Both were furiously throwing snow at each other. Toushirou had the upper hand, as he felt the cold less than she did, and knew how to manipulate the snow. Soon he'd pummeled her with so much snow that she felt like half a snowman.

It was wonderful relief, to be able to forget all their troubles and responsibilities and focus on just the moment, and engage in something childish again. It brought them both back to earlier, simpler days in Rukongai, when they had still been children, with no tensions.

And yet, there was no way to move back to those days. They had gone too far down this path as shinigami, and their emotions had gone too far.

Momo, feeling as if she couldn't win, dashed at Toushirou suddenly. The latter looked at her warily, unsure of her intentions, and only grunted as she collided with him. Both gasped as they felt gravity suddenly pull on them, and toppled backward into the soft, powdery snow.

There was silence. Both were aware that they were very close to each other. Much, much too close. Both hearts were thumping loudly within their ribcage, and emotions that both had kept at bay for so long suddenly hit them in full force.

Momo felt her face redden as her mind registered their position. She was pressed up against him, and snow was pressing against both of them, threatening to freeze them together. She willed her body to move, but it would not yield. She was frozen, held in place by the brilliant turquoise eyes staring up at her. They had never been so intense, so open. She could see emotion and thoughts rushing through their depths, emotions that made her heart beat faster, though at the moment, she could not name them.

"Momo…" Toushirou murmured, gazing up at her. He felt as if he were drowning, drowning in her warm, brown eyes. Despite lying in snow, he felt warmth rush through him, warmth seemingly instigated by the liquid chocolate of her eyes. They seemed torn, raw emotion in their depths, a sort of desperation and longing swirling in their gaze.

Neither knew who moved first. Both just knew that the eyes that haunted them seemed to move close and close until their sight dimmed, replaced by a supernova of feelings that burst before them. The world around them vanished in surreal mist, and nothing was real, nothing except for themselves, and the emotions rushing through them, rushing between them.

The kiss was chaste, gentle, and yet the emotions behind it surmounted anything they'd felt before.

Abruptly, however, Toushirou pulled away. He realized that he'd pulled her into an embrace, and quickly let go. "I'm…I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

Momo blinked, confused, and grasped his sleeve as he made to move away. She couldn't let him go. Not now, not after that….

"Hitsugaya-kun…"

"I shouldn't have done that. I don't know why you still put up with me. Don't you hate me? Aren't you angry with me for what I've done? I stabbed you in the heart, right where Aizen got you last time! I betrayed you, just like he did."

He slammed his fists into the ground, self-loathing written all over his face. They were back upon that topic.

Momo flinched and bit her lip. "I thought I would be as well," she murmured, staring at the sky.

The snow was falling again, but no one was in the park with them, and instead of seeming festive, it seemed like winter's tears. Toushirou inched away from her, but her grip was tight. "I thought I would be angry, that I would begrudge you…" a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "I guess Rangiku-san beat me to it. As soon as I'd woken up, she was there, and the first thing she blurted out was how it wasn't your fault. I guess I'd known all along it wasn't your fault, that Aizen had tricked you, because I didn't argue. But I never had a chance to say it, because I was afraid that if I brought up the topic, you'd snap, and you'd do something rash…"

"Hinamori…" he began, but she cut him off.

"No, Toushirou," she said, using his first name to get his attention. "You didn't betray me. I don't hate you. I forgive you, so you should forgive yourself."

Toushirou still looked unconvinced. Momo didn't know what to do, and so, she did the one thing her heart longed for. She wrapped her arms around his form, and held him tightly. He was still, but both knew that he could feel her heart beating beneath in her chest, beating strong beats of life. "Please, Toushirou…Don't hate yourself anymore. It's in the past. I'm well again. I can stand on my own again."

"Maybe I should just go away, and let you take care of yourself. You seem to get hurt a lot less without me around."

"No!" she yelled out, surprising both of them with her conviction. "No, don't…I want you to stay with me…I need you to…"

"Hinamori?" he turned, and was shocked to see her in tears. "You've always been there for me, looked out for me. I only realized and appreciated it too late. But I want you to keep watching over me. I want you to be there for me always, but I also want you to stop treating me so carefully, like I'm a piece of glass that can break at any moment. I want us to let all these barriers go, because I can't stand seeing you at a distance, always so closed off anymore! You haven't been the same since the war, and you've been so cold and distant and bitter. It hurts, Toushirou! It hurts me to see you like that, taking all the blame still, even after so long. I want you to stop hurting, to ease your pain. I want to be there for you, to be by your side…always…"

Toushirou didn't know what to say. He only reached out, tentatively, and brushed her cheek. She looked up at him, her brown eyes glistening with tears, but a wide smile upon her face. "I love you, Toushirou. I know it's selfish of me, but I don't want to let you go. Even if you don't feel the same, I just…just beg you to let go of the past, and be my friend again…it's all I ask."

"You…love me?" Toushirou asked, unsure that he'd heard right. "But…Aizen…"

Momo's face twisted slightly in disgust mixed with shaky amusement, as if she'd just found a slug crawling upon her. "Aizen? Ugh, he'd be way to old, and frankly, after everything that's happened, I don't see how anyone can say I love him. I never loved him. I idolized him, and admired him. I guess I wanted my idol to acknowledge me so much that it blinded me to his faults, and blinded me to my own feelings, and what my heart was telling me. I'm sorry for all the pain and trouble I've caused you, and I know you can't possibly feel the same way, but…"

She looked up at him, and smiled again. "…There was only ever one person that my heart longed for."

Momo gasped as she felt herself suddenly pulled into another embrace. "Toushirou?"

He held her, held her tightly, as if never wanting to let go. "How can you think that I don't feel the same? Why do you think I've always protected you and tried to protect you? I promised that I'd protect you no matter what, because you were the most important person to me."

"Shiro-chan? You can't mean…"

"Baka bed wetter," he said, and for the first time in a long while, he smiled. Not a scowl, not a smirk, but a soft smile. "Do you even need to ask? I love you too. How can you even think otherwise after everything?"

Momo felt her heart swell up, and she thought she might just burst from the happiness. Her face split in a wide grin, and with a laugh, she tackled him again. They fell in the snow again, both elated and happy, the oppressive barrier between them lifted, the words unsaid spoken, and the emotions held back released at last.

Toushirou held her tightly in his embrace again, and she held him, as if fearing that he'd melt away. they just lay there, relishing being in each other's presence. They looked up at the sky. "Maybe I should get ask Hyourinmaru to make it stop snowing," Toushirou mused.

"No, I like the snow," Momo said, smiling. "It reminds me of you…oh, that reminds me!"

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the small gift that thankfully had not been lost. She sat up, and he did as well, questioning. Lifting it out, she put it around his neck. "For you," she said, grinning. "Merry Christmas, Shiro-chan!"

Toushirou looked down at it in shock, letting the name slide for the moment. "A dragon, huh? I can see why you got it. Thank you. Here," he added, reaching into his own pocket. She was surprised as he lifted out a golden chain, on which hung a regal looking bird. Its wings were spread, and two red stones made up its eyes. "_Fenghuang, _though those westerners think that it's an Asian Phoenix." He grinned slightly, and put it around her neck. "I didn't know whether or not I should give it to you, but this felt like a good time."

She smiled as she examined the beautifully crafted piece of jewelry. She loved it already, and felt a rush of elation at receiving a present from Toushirou. The bird reminded her much of Tobiume's other form, and something she'd once read in a legend.

"Clever," she murmured, "that you chose this. The dragon and the fenghuang…"

The boy beside her only smiled. He stood, and offered her his hand. "Come on. We should go get ourselves dried before you get sick and Matsumoto takes my hearing with her yelling."

Momo laughed, savoring their easy conversation and interactions now that everything between them was said and done. As they walked, however, they passed an old tree, and she stopped, glancing up at a certain plant with white berries that she'd heard about before.

"Mistletoe," she said, pointing up at it. Toushirou stopped as well, and looked up at it. "Your point?"

She hit him playfully on the arm. "Don't tell me you don't know the human tradition! It's Christmas after all!"

He rolled his eyes. "Whoever came up with that tradition is an idiot. Who'd want to kiss under a parasitic plant? How's that suppose to signify love, unless you count someone latching themselves to another like a parasite."

Momo pouted. "Don't say that! It makes love sound bad. Besides, we're in the World of the Living on Christmas! Shouldn't we follow their traditions?"

Toushirou sighed, but he turned toward her again. Leaning close, he whispered, "If it makes you happy."

Their lips met again, and they shared another sweet kiss.

"You know," he murmured as they broke apart, "Christmas is a time for giving presents. And as much as I liked this present," he touched the dragon that hung around his neck, "I think the best present I received this Christmas was simply being with you."

Momo smiled. "I agree, Shiro-chan…the only thing I wanted was you…and I have you now. But still, I won't say no to partake into some more Christmas traditions while we're here."

And so, the snow fell, the carols played, Holiday dinners were eaten, presents were given and the Christmas bells rang. The two shinigami took part in much of the celebration and traditions, doing it really just for the sake of spending time together. As the Holiday Spirit swept over the population and the land, love was what gripped the two newfound lovers. Both had to agree, this was by far the best Christmas they'd ever had.

Happy Holidays!

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So…hope it wasn't sappy. I had this plotted out, and then I realized that AznVKai also wrote about mistletoe…I hope you don't mind!

And that comment about mistletoe being a parasitic plant was made by my Bio Teacher a while back. I just couldn't resist. The Fenghuang and the dragon is just some Chinese legend about them being Soul mates and whatnot. If you've read my Heavenly Guardian Stories, I have also included that Tobiume is such a bird, as it seemed to fit.

I also didn't specify where they were, though, since I was just watching Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I think I imagined it as a small village in England like Godric's Hollow or something.

Well…ahem…hope you enjoyed…maybe, as a Christmas Present for this author, whom the holiday spirit lost on, would you leave me a kind review?


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